Here’s a guest post from Kyle at Rather-Be-Shopping.com.
I like Kacie’s tagline, “not-so-common sense ways you can save money.” This made me think of some of the more unconventional ways you can save money in everyday life. Most of us are already familiar with money saving tips like cutting back on the cable bill or stop driving through your local Starbucks for a $4 cups of coffee. Those are fairly common sense. But here are a few not-so-common sense ways to save money, followed by some online coupons to help you save even more money.
~ Water Plants With Recycled Water. This one comes courtesy of my Dad. He puts a 5-gallon bucket in the corner of the shower and when it gets full, he uses the water on his houseplants and plants on his patio.
~ Haircut For Less. This one is courtesy of my wife. She was going to a hair salon for a few months when she decided to ask if they had a “training day”. They did, and now she gets her hair done by a trainee, they always do a great job, and it costs a fraction of the regular price. Ask about this at your hair salon.
~ Save Water In The Shower. Again, this one is from my frugal Dad. He gets in the shower, turns on the water to get wet, turns off the water, soaps up, then turns the water back on. He does indeed save water, but he has not had a warm shower since 1973. :-)
~ Brick In The Toilet. By putting a brick in the back of the toilet, you use less water every time you flush. This tip works best if you have an older toilet that uses a lot of water on every flush. The newer ‘low-flow’ toilets use much less water and would make a brick in the back less useful.
Do you think any of these tips are worth the effort? Please feel free to add your unconventional frugal living tips! Looking forward to your comments.
Now on to a more conventional money saving idea, online coupons. These coupons may be able to help you save money on things you need. If your favorite store is not listed, please contact me and I will do my best to personally find you a coupon code!
Those are great tips except for the brick part. They actually suggest that you use an old bottle filled with water instead, because the brick can chip off and the bits end up clogging the tank. :-)
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There is a cosmetology school in the next town over that I use. Haircuts, massage, pedicures, manicures, etc are much cheaper there than at any other location I’ve found in my area!
I’ve read a lot of places you shouldn’t actually use a brick in your toilet. It will start to break down and cause more trouble with your sewer system than the money you were trying to save!
Interesting point on the brick Jennifer.
I had not heard that, but it makes sense. A good alternative would be a plastic bottle full of sand, that would eliminate that concern.
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We have a Paul Mitchell School here (The Temple) just one block south of my house. They have what appear to be really great deals on stuff. There is a “phase 1″ and “phase 2″ classification system there. Phase 2 are the more gifted/experienced students. Only problem? It’s a school, so just like with any other school, students can skip if they choose to. I had an appointment with phase 2 and the girl who was supposed to do my hair skipped that day. At least they gave me a card that entitles me to a free hair cut or 1/2 off my next color service. Now it will be super cheap! Also, the only diff between the 2 phases in price is $5/service. Not too bad. I’ll have to let you know how they are once I actually get my hair done!
Be careful to check the amount of water that your toilet needs to flush with. If it doesn’t have enough, then you’ll start getting blockages in your sewer pipe, which obviously aren’t pleasant.
There is a device that you can fit yourself, that allows you to directly control how much water your cistern uses every time you flush. It fits onto the syphon, and when you release the handle, it breaks the syphon, so your system stops flushing. It’s great when you only need a small flush.
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Ok, one step past the brick in the toilet–my family practices the “if it’s yellow, let it mellow” philosophy in the bathroom. I can understand if you find it gross, but we save money and waste FAR less water by not flushing reflexively. When people are over, though, we behave like civilized folks, I promise.
I water the plants with water saved from drinks - like the water bottle I brought today, and didn’t finish. Instead of dumping it in the sink, it goes in a watering can I keep under the sink.
Extra benefit: some plants ( like “corn plants”, aka dracaenea) like the water best after it’s set out over night. It’s supposed to help prevent brown spots on dracaenea leaves.
The best thing I have discovered are ’swap-meet’ parties. Get your girlfriends together for the evening and get them to bring five items of clothing from their closet that are in good condition, and that they no longer wear/doesn’t fit etc. Then you all swap your clothes around, and you get to refresh your wardrobe for free.
I would never have thought of re-using old shower water - great tip.
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The brick in the toilet is a pretty good idea, but you may want to put the brick in a waterproof zip-lock bag first. Bricks tend to fall apart a bit when submerged in water, and the bag will keep all the particles from floating around in your tank.